Teenagers To Be Vaccinated Against COVID-19
The Ministry of Health and Child Care on Friday said the Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe (MCAZ) gave conditional authority for the vaccination of children, that is, those who are between the ages of 14 and 17. The Ministry said in a statement:
The condition is that the Ministry of Health and Child Care shall conduct a Phase Three clinical trial first before rolling out the vaccination, and the ministry is in the process of implementing the MCAZ conditions and once that is complete, the rollout will begin.
Zimbabwe is now extending the vaccination campaign to teenagers from 14 to 17 who were not previously catered for in the initial plan after scientists agreed it was safe to vaccinate this age group.
Several countries have already started to vaccinate children against COVID-19, with France now offering vaccinations to all over-12s.
More than 2 million French children, roughly 40% of the 12-17 age group, had received the first shot by 4 August this year.
In Italy, the Pfizer vaccine was authorised for 12- to 15-year-olds in late May, with bookings across most regions beginning in July, and in the final week of July the Moderna jab was approved for 12- to 17-year-olds.
In the US, about 40% of 12- to 17-year-olds had at least one vaccine dose by the first week of August.
